Mississippi Center for Justice
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 134203234
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2024
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024
- Location
- Jackson, MS, USA
- Phone
- 6013522269
- Rating
- 73
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Legal Services
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $4,089,082
- Expenses
- $5,079,546
- Assets
- $10,368,099
- Liabilities
- $1,015,536
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
17 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- VANGELA M WADE (PRESIDENT/CEO)
Highest reported compensation
- VANGELA M WADE (PRESIDENT/CEO): $290,965 total reported compensation
- ROBERT MCDUFF (DIRECTOR, GEORGE RILEY IMP): $216,617 total reported compensation
- STACEY BUCHANAN (DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS/GEN): $161,633 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
Mississippi center for justice is a nonprofit, public interest law firm committed to advancing racial and economic justice. Supported and staffed by attorneys and other professionals, the center develops and pursues strategies to combat discrimination and poverty statewide.
What it reported doing in 2024
Mcj's advocacy, direct services, policy, and impact litigation continued its significant and sustainable progress towards advancing racial, economic, and social justice across Mississippi. This year, mcj showed up in community 373 times and reached 38 out of 82 counties with in person clinics, outreach events and focus groups make an impact on people of color and those living in poverty in the state of Mississippi. Mcj continues to advocate for medicaid expansion, educating elected officials and mississippians on the importance of access to healthcare for nearly 200,000 uninsured mississippians, many of whom are working. Mcj continues to help mississippians expunge their criminal records, thereby unlocking new employment and housing opportunities. In the last year, mcj helped generate over 450 petitions/orders for expungements. Mcj successfully challenged sb 2358, defeating a law that attempted to limit the universe of those who can help disabled voters cast absentee ballots by mail to election officials, postal employees, family and household members, and caregivers.mcj's challenge to the Mississippi legislative redistricting plan of 2022 led to the creation of three new majority black districts.mcj's education project reached over 100 families in Mississippi and works to provide know your rights seminars, advocacy and direct representation to families in education matters across the state.mcj prevented over 80 foreclosures and partners with several banks to present information, financial literacy, and advice to fire time home buyers.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Donor-supported. 77% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 99% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. A relatively small share of total spending goes to programs and fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 60
- Transparency & Controls: 83
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 30
- Growth: 60
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 71.3%; rating input score 71
- Program expense ratio: 56.1%; rating input score 56
- Fundraising efficiency: $5.84 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 21; 21st percentile among comparable filings
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 93.8%; rating input score 94; 20th percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 6 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 100
- Compensation committee: Pass
- Independent consultant: Pass
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
- Written employment contract: Pass
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: 47.9%; rating input score 48; 15th percentile among comparable filings
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: Pass
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: -24.2%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.04; rating input score 62; 62nd percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.1; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 15.4%; rating input score 18; 18th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -3.1% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 1.6% per year; rating input score 100; 18th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 13.3% per year; rating input score 100; 70th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 71.3% of revenue deployed · 56.1% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 13 of 13 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $2.9M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $291K · 17 people listed · 6 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 3 contractors listed · $452K reported
- Consistency: 35 of 36 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 8 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
- Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 5 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: Filed and resolved organization relationships.
- Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
- People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Review — Financial Efficiency: Program expense ratio scored 56/100.
- High — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 21/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Grant itemization coverage scored 48/100.
- High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 5/100.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 18/100.
- Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
- Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 59/100.